A Thousand Horizons
by Darkened Memories
Summary: Kaoru is a descendant of a daughter of the sea, a nymph. Gifted with the magic powers of her ancestors, she finds herself being sent with a highly attractive, yet aggravating man to rescue the worlds being threatened by a dark force. KaoruxBattousai
1. Prologue

I had to write this story, it simply demanded to be written-so apologies to those of you who have read/are reading "Who Needs to be Saved?". I've just finished the next chapter for that, and am sending it to my beta today, so hopefully that will be up soon.

**Disclaimer:** Obviously I don't own it, so why bother with this?

A Thousand Horizons

**--Prologue--**

Kaoru's crystalline eyes shimmered and sparkled with myriads of emotions as she surveyed the calmness of the grey oceans. The mists swirled and shifted over the pearl-grey crests as they headed for the shores, each rise and fall dancing to its own rhythm. The seagulls cried loudly, breaking the enchanting sounds of the waves for but a moment-then blending in with the almost musical sounds.

Although, that wasn't quite what drew her attention today. Something had called her here to the ocean, something inexplicable-a pull, a call of sorts, beseeching her to the ocean's edge. Having answered the call, she noticed what might have been the reason of her calling.

A lone figure garbed in black from head to toe, a long silver cape draped about his shoulders, stood where the earth and water met. The waves swirled around his booted feet, almost as if in greeting.

The young woman shook her head, only she had been greeted in such a manner-only because she was related by blood to a daughter of the sea. Though that had been many generations ago, the magic had returned in this day and age to her-even greater than those who had come before. Surveying the stranger with interest, her bright eyes fell upon his crimson red hair which had been pulled up into a high ponytail and cascaded down his back like a thin fiery waterfall.

Her breath caught in her throat as she realized that he had known of her presence. His stance indicated that he was prepared to attack if necessary. A small smile graced her full lips, she'd just have to make sure that he had no reason to attack, now wouldn't she?

Her eyes flickered then to his sheath, the wind having moved the cape and exposing the sheath and hilt to her view. A warrior then, she hadn't seen a true warrior in many years. The others had simply been imposters, fakes-those who had sought to gain the way of the warrior and yet failed miserably tended to try to fool others into thinking they were to be feared. She snorted inwardly, how on earth anyone could mistake those fools for the real warriors was beyond her comprehension. You could feel the difference, she mused as she practically felt his ki swirl and ebb about her form.

It seemed he was evaluating her without even bothering to look. That angered her slightly, though at the same time impressed the woman. He must either be extremely confident or extremely powerful-though after pondering this for a minute, Kaoru decided it to be both.

She stepped forward, her delicate feet barely making an imprint in the pale sands. "Why are you here?"

To her surprise, he turned his head slightly to look at her. Amber eyes shone in the brilliant sunset, for some reason Kaoru's heart began to beat faster.

He turned back to stare out into the sea. Silence greeted her query.

"I know you heard me." she stated in a louder tone.

"Why do you wish to know?" his dark, mysterious voice captivated her faintly waning interests.

"I was called here, told that I was supposed to meet someone." she inched closer, her long, wild raven hair tossed gently by the wind moved in front of her face. With an irritated frown, she moved it back, "I think I was supposed to meet you."

"You won't be able to come back." he stated abruptly.

Her eyes filled with confusion, "Excuse me?"

He turned back to look at her once more, "You won't be able to return." He glanced up at the sky, "If you leave, you are choosing that fate willingly. I will not tolerate any complaining on your part if you decide later on that you made a mistake."

She glared at him, her arms crossed over her chest, "And why would I want to leave in the first place?" She uncrossed her arms and raised them above her head, feeling the magics and the power of the sea tingling at her fingertips. "This is my home."

The man finally turned to face her, a smirk upon his exotic features. His amber eyes then narrowed, as if in concentration. Reaching up to the sky, he murmured a few words quickly and quietly. Suddenly, the sky erupted in thunder and lightning. The sea tossed and rolled violently, breaking roughly against the shore.

A blinding flash of silvery-white lightning ended it all in a loud cacophony of noise. It tore open a wide hole in the sky.

Kaoru gaped silently at the scene before her. What kind of power could this person possess? He opened a portal as if it were no trouble at all, no sweat beaded upon his forehead-no sign of fatigue could be traced in his features.

He stepped forward towards the ever-widening rend, the force from it whipping his hair and clothes about. "Have you decided?"

The woman shook her head, "I don't even know where you're going to take me." "Besides," she pointed out, "I don't even know you."

She blinked, the man had gone. The rend was still there, seeming as if it would draw her in at any point-but he was gone. Kaoru froze as she felt his presence behind her.

The man leaned in close and bent his head down to whisper in her ear.

Kaoru's eyes went wide at his words, her cheeks flamed furiously as she turned to hit him. "How dare you!" she growled out as he effortlessly dodged her attack. "How dare you talk to me like that! I'm not yours or whatever perverse idea you have."

A wicked gleam flickered in his deep amber orbs. "We'll see." He then turned and looked back at the rend which had expanded to the size of a small house. Energy crackled and roared loudly, light flashed in brilliant streaks at the edges of the portal.

"You do realize that you have little choice in the matter." He smirked, "Unless you wish to carry the guilt of being unwilling to save innocent lives."

Kaoru glared fiercely at the man.

"Are you coming?" he offered a hand.

"Do I have a choice?" she asked sourly.

A brief smirk and a flash in his eyes was the only response she received.

* * *

Please review and tell me if you think I should continue it or not. As it was a random thought for a story, I won't be offended if ya'll think it's not good enough to continue.


	2. Plains of Thunder World I

Wow! You all are so great! -tears- I can't believe I've gotten this many reviews for just one chapter, that hasn't happened before-with the exception of my other new story. Thank you all so much!  
Also, to explain a little-I have had a little trouble in deciding where I'm going to go with my story, so I'm going to warn you right now that updates may or may not take a while on this one. It's very different from any other story I've written to date, so I'm a little unsure of myself.  
Anyways... that being said-I've decided on having them visit 12 worlds, jfyi. That ought to give me a good number of chapters, etc. Hopefully this chapter won't disappoint anyone...

**Disclaimer:** -plucks flower petals- Own, don't own, own, don't own, own... darn it-don't own it.

**-o-**

**--Plains of Thunder-World I--**

**-o-**

Thunder flashed and lightning roared as two figures emerged from a large rend in the sky. Kaoru gasped in shock as she felt the world sway dizzyingly beneath her feet. Closing her eyes tightly, she wrapped her arms about her slim body, willing the unpleasant sensation to cease.

Opening one crystal blue eye warily, her mouth thinned in fright as she noticed they were in the midst of a vast ominous plain with no shelter of any sort in sight. Lightning pierced the air with its white, blazing, jagged blades. Thunder roared in fury as rain pelted the newcomers unmercifully.

Kaoru felt completely and totally miserable.

There was no sea.

No magic.

Nothing. At least, nothing she could feel in this immediate area.

She shot a heated glare towards the red-headed man who had just happened to get them tossed into this world. At the moment, Kaoru hated him.

He just _had_ to pick this place.

The woman jumped as the sky lit up in a bright crescendo of lightning and thunder. Turning her reproachful gaze upon the fiery-haired man, she was surprised at first to see a smirk upon his face. Surprise quickly turned into anger as she was tempted to swing a fist at him.

"There's nothing to be afraid of." he stated as he walked forward, his gait smooth and steady-easily giving away the fact that he was a swordsman of superior caliber.

Kaoru shook her head, unconvinced at his bold words.Of course, he probably didn't have to worry about anything. She fingered her dripping locks that were beginning to stick to her skin. Contemplating whether or not it would be worth her while to pick a fight with the man, she decided to stay silent for the time being. 'He ought to consider himself lucky.'

Going against her better judgment, the woman followed the cloaked figure who strode confidently-almost arrogantly in front of her. She could feel her teeth begin to grind against each other in anger, who did he think he was? Kaoru huffed and kicked at a small rock, in an effort to release some of her growing irritation.

Suddenly, the rock had teeth. Long needle-like teeth oozing with a slimy green substance. 'Rocks should _not _have teeth!' Kaoru panicked inwardly as she immediately backed up and turned to run-ignoring the sounds of it hopping heavily behind her.

By the time she caught up with the red-head, her breath was coming in labored pants. She tried to quickly conceal the mild fright that still lingered on her expressive features as she walked alongside of him.

'The man's going to pay for this.' her thoughts growled hatefully.

"There's an inn within a few miles of here. Keep an eye out for it." he commanded in a brusk tone, his amber orbs searching the plains.

Kaoru growled something in response that caused a dampened red eyebrow to arch quizzically.

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After they were both soaked to the bone, Kaoru especially, they finally came across the inn.

It was a small place, but it looked pleasant to the eye after the awful place they had been walking. The woman shivered, at least she hadn't come across any more of those rocks... though she hadn't tried kicking at any more. Intelligence being the better part of valor of course.

The fiery haired man opened the large wooden door and walked inside, not bothering to see if Kaoru would follow. She snorted in distaste and followed, making sure to close the door securely behind her.

"Welcome! Did you and you wife need a room?" the large man behind a small wooden counter greeted cheerfully, oblivious to the stunned look then death glare he received from the raven-haired woman.

Her companion, however, seemed to take it all in stride. "Yes." was his over-whelming response as he dropped a handful of gold coins on the counter, causing the man's eyes to widen.

He looked at the pile, then looked up into amber orbs. Shaking his head, he singled out three coins from the relatively large pile and pushed the rest back towards the warrior. "That's all I'll be needin', this'll pay for your room, supper, and breakfast tomorrow."

Looking almost surprised for a millisecond, he pushed three more coins towards the inn-keeper and pocketed the rest. "For your honesty." he stated flatly, then took the key the astonished man proffered.

Leaving a dripping trail behind him, he turned and stalked off to the room.

Kaoru stared after him, a very important detail coming to her mind. "Wait a second!" she called out after his retreating figure. Seeing that he wasn't about to pause until he got to the room, Kaoru stomped her foot in irritation before bolting after him.

Seeing the man open a door and walk inside, she darted in after him. "We can't share a room!"

For the second time since they arrived, the man's eyebrow rose into a delicate arch.

"It's not proper." Kaoru crossed her arms over her chest, eyes darkening.

"If you have any money with you, go rent another room. If not, then make do." he responded, unfastening his cloak and letting it drop with a sploshing sound to the floor. "I don't force myself on women-I prefer my partners willing." the man stated calmly.

Her eyes darkened even more as a heated flush washed over her face, but she realized the truth to his words. Sighing, she plopped down on the floor. Being unhappy with her wet state, she focused on removing the excess water and sending it out of a crack in the window-accidentally-on-purpose spraying him with some of the excess drops.

He shot a heated glare her way before he started to dry his cloak.

Kaoru slowly stretched and stood up, feeling much better now that she wasn't soaking wet. "By the way, I'm Kaoru. You probably already knew though, didn't you?" she sent a curious glance his way.

Neither agreeing with nor denying the statement, he continued to dry his garment.

"You never did mention your name." she pushed.

"Kenshin." was the short reply. For some reason, he felt it somewhat peculiar that someone had asked for his name. It was the first time in years... not counting the ones that had been trying to kill/hire him. He raised his amber orbs to find Kaoru staring out of the window, her eyes clouded over in musing over past memories.

Unintentionally, he found his gaze roaming over her figure. Tearing his gaze from her figure, he concentrated harder on his garment. Maybe he would have time for that later; seducing her would take a lot of time and effort that he was unwilling to part with at the moment.

Kaoru sat listening to the sounds of the rain, thinking back to when her father and mother had still been alive. A small lump rose in her throat at these thoughts. Shaking her head to remove the memories before she started to react further, she paused as she felt a wave of ki. A wave of distinctly unpleasant and very strong ki.

Seeing the way Kenshin had stiffened, Kaoru knew that he had sensed it as well-and knowing him, had probably sensed it a little while back.

She didn't need to wonder what they were looking for, it seemed it had found them.  
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--END NOTES--

Please forgive me for the wait! I'm cramming for tests, etc. and so forth-so it's hard to update quickly. -bows in apology-  
This chapter was necessary for setting them up in the new world... so if you found it boring, apologies... -retreats to secret hiding spot-


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